


Of Secrets and Misunderstandings

by sacredORDINARYdays



Series: Revelations and the Overprotectiveness that Follows [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Anakin Skywalker Needs a Hug, Darn it Qui-Gon, Human Disaster Anakin Skywalker, Other, Slave Anakin Skywalker, The Council doesn't know Anakin's a slave apparently, misunderstandings galore, neither does Obi-Wan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:20:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29503296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sacredORDINARYdays/pseuds/sacredORDINARYdays
Summary: They weren’t going to take it out. THEY WEREN'T GOING TO TAKE IT OUT.Qui-Gon had deactivated his slave chip, but they weren’t going to take it out. It took him a while to figure that out, wondering why he hadn't been called to the Halls of Healing. But now he knew, and Anakin felt like he was going to throw up.Or:Qui-Gon conveniently dies before remembering to tell the Council or Obi-Wan that Anakin Skywalker was a slave, and Anakin doesn't know that the Jedi don't know. Neither side finds out until Anakin, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, and Rex must take a mission to Zygerria. (Set during Zygerrian Arc)
Relationships: CT-7567 | Rex & Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker
Series: Revelations and the Overprotectiveness that Follows [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2194389
Comments: 78
Kudos: 380
Collections: Guerra_das_Estrelas





	1. Chapter 1

ANAKIN: AGED 9

FIVE MONTHS AFTER REACHING CORUSCANT

They weren’t going to take it out. _They weren’t going to take it out._

Qui-Gon had deactivated his slave chip, but _they weren’t going to take it out._ It took him a while to figure that out, wondering why he hadn't been called to the Halls of Healing. But now he knew, and Anakin felt like he was going to throw up. A long-ago conversation with his mother popped up, unbidden, in his head. 

_“You’re never truly free until it’s gone, Anakin.” She had said_. 

He had promised then, that he would free them both, and they would open up a shop together, and help other slaves too. 

How could he now, if he wasn’t truly free?

(It never occurred to him that Qui-Gon hadn’t told the Council or Obi-Wan about his origins) 

At least the Jedi were nice, though. And Obi-Wan was great! He even let Anakin eat _dessert_ , though he did draw the line at three brownies. 

Rubbing gently at his elbow where the deactivated chip was placed, he wondered for a moment if they all saw him as _lesser_ , but he quickly chased the thought away. 

No, they were too Jedi to think that. And even if they did, Anakin mused wryly, at least he was used to it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ANAKIN: AGED 11

TWO YEARS AFTER REACHING CORUSCANT

“No, Padawan, I’m sorry, but we cannot go visit your mother,” to his credit, Obi-Wan did look apologetic. 

Anakin knew that there was little to no chance of seeing his mom again, but that didn’t stop him from hoping that _maybe_ \--. There was no point in asking again, he knew the answer would be the same. Nodding his head glumly, the nine-year old went back to picking at his vegetables. 

There was nothing like _this_ on Tatooine. He thought his mom might like them very much. Anakin supposed it shouldn’t have been such a big shock, with the Jedi always going _on and on_ about attachment, but still. He’d hoped that maybe, just _possibly,_ even if he couldn’t see her again, that they could’ve freed her. 

He knew better now. He wouldn’t ask again. 

  
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ANAKIN: AGED 21

COUNCIL CHAMBERS DISCUSSING ZYGERRIA

“We would like to send you, Skywalker, and Padawan Tano to locate the missing colonists. Would this be alright with you, Master Kenobi?”

Anakin couldn’t breathe. They wanted him to go to _Zygerria._ He had heard rumors about it, when he was still on Tatooine. Even the most ignorant of slaves knew of the horrors that those who served the Zygerrian Empire seemed to carry with them for the rest of their lives. 

Even Tattoine was better than that...that _torture chamber._ It was a prison carved of gold and drenched in jewels, built upon the backs of _slaves._ And they wanted him to _go to Zygerria._

Flashes of a stinking slug slapping his mother, and of endless hours in a junkyard, with no food or water swam in the sand dunes of his mind. 

For some indescribable reason, Anakin was now endlessly thirsty. Every sensation in his parched mouth hurt, and his throat cried out for water. 

Fists clenched under his sleeves, Anakin hadn’t even noticed Obi-Wan calling his name until a gentle hand grasped his shoulder. Snapping his head up, he met the concerned eyes of his former master. 

“Anakin? Are you alright?” thinly veiled worry tainted Obi-Wan’s Coruscanti accent, and the rest of the Council were staring at him quizzically. 

Kriff. 

Now they knew. They _knew_ he wasn’t over his past, that he hadn’t fully let go of his history, that sometimes he laid awake at night, still feeling the lingering pangs of hunger and thirst. They knew and they were going to hate him for it. 

Trying to salvage the situation, Anakin coughed, vocal chords crying out in protest for water. 

“Sorry master, just a little thirsty."

Obi-Wan stared at him, skeptical, but pushed no further. Anakin hoped they didn’t notice the way he walked a little too quickly out of the Council Room, in search of some precious liquid. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ANAKIN: AGED 21

ABOARD _THE TECORA_ AND EN ROUTE TO ZYGERRIA

Anakin nervously fingered his canteen of water, heart beating wildly in his chest. He tried not to think about the mission too much, or about how he was supposed to be a _slaver_. 

The mere thought of being a _depur_ made the small meal he had come dangerously close to ending up on the ship floor. 

Obi-Wan seemed to pick up on his unease, and questioned him quietly, not wishing to stir Ahsoka from her nap, or Rex from his reading. 

“Anakin? You’ve been on edge ever since we’ve taken this mission, are you sure you’re feeling okay?”

Anakin opened his mouth to protest, saying that he was fine, but Obi-Wan beat him to the chase.

“ _Don’t_ say that you’re fine. I can tell you’re not. Ahsoka and Rex can too, and we’re just worried.” Obi-Wan’s brow creased in concern as he took in just how pale his former padawan looked, and the slight tremor in Anakin’s hands shook him to his core. 

Anakin was _never_ like this. What had brought it on?  


For his part, Anakin debated briefly brushing it off, but talking...might actually do him some good. And at least Obi-Wan knew already, so it wouldn’t be like explaining his entire history to someone who was clueless. 

“It’s just... _kark this is harder than I thought it’d be_ , the mission brings up...you know” Anakin gestured vaguely around his elbow, where his slave chip was. 

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, looking genuinely confused, “What?”

Anakin stared at him, oh _darn was he really going to have to spell this out?_

“Well, you know, going to a _slave empire_ coming from Tatooine and being a former slave myself brings up...well, nothing pleasant.”

Obi-Wan nodded, understandingly, before the second half of the statement reached his brain. His eyes widened, and Anakin could feel the unbridled horror and confusion flooding their bond. 

_What in the world--?_

“Did you just say _former slave_?!” Obi-Wan managed to choke out. 

Now it was Anakin’s turn to frown, lost at the situation. 

“Well, yeah? Don’t you remember? Qui-Gon helped me win my freedom? But we didn’t have enough money to free my mom? Then he took me to Coruscant?” 

What the _kriff_ was happening? Surely Obi-Wan didn’t _forget_ he was a slave, did he? The thought that his master had forgotten about his childhood stung more than Anakin would like to admit. 

Rex, glancing up at the noise, stared curiously at what was going on. He hadn’t heard the part about Anakin being a slave, but anything that rattled the normally stoic Obi-Wan Kenobi couldn’t be anything good. 

For his part, Obi-Wan’s brain finally stopped swirling around the words ‘former slave’ and he was now able to slot the pieces together. 

“Are you telling me _you were a slave and you didn’t tell me?!”_ Obi-Wan looked like he was about to vomit, and was paling rapidly. “Oh _Force._ When you said you wanted to visit your mother I-- _Oh Force._ I _turned you down_.”

Rex swivelled his head to face his general, horror coating his features. _His general had been a slave? How had they not known?!_

Obi-Wan looked as if he was having some sort of abhorrent revelation, and he shakily collapsed into one of the chairs. 

Anakin stared at him, concerned and _so karking confused_. 

“Y-you didn’t know?” 

How had Obi-Wan not known? All these years, he’d thought that the Council, and even his Master sometimes, were deliberately testing him, reprimanding him whenever he winced while saying ‘Master’, or refrained from using the title at all. If they hadn’t known...it made so much more _sense_ now, why they didn’t take the chip out, why they seemed to not care _at all_ , and why they didn’t even bat an eye when an initiate had lashed out saying that he was no better than _property_. 

Obi-Wan’s eyes were wide with horror, and with an understanding he did not want to have. 

“No! _No, Anakin._ I-I didn’t know! _Kriff, how could I not have known?! I’m so sorry, Anakin, I’m so sorry”_

Startled by the onslaught of _pain-regret-and I failed_ radiating from his former master, Anakin reached over, and grasped Obi-Wan’s hands. 

“Hey, it’s ok. If you didn’t know, then well...it explains so much. And you _didn’t_ fail, Obi-Wan. You were the _best_ master I could have asked for, and I wouldn't want anyone else.”

Obi-Wan was gripping his hands back with a bone-crushing ferocity, as though if he let go, Anakin was going to disappear. 

“A-are you alright, sir? Going on this mission, I mean,” Rex managed to croak out, the revelation of his general’s past unravelling inside his mind. 

Obi-Wan seemed to look even more sick, if that were possible. 

“Anakin! You’re going to a _slave empire! Force,_ we’re going to a slave empire! Hold on, I’ll just tell the Council, and then we can get you out of this mission, _I promise_ , they didn’t know Anakin! We can-”

“Master, master, calm down. I-it’s okay. I can do the mission.” Anakin knew that he, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka worked best together, and besides, “I know the…” a pause here “the ins and outs of slavery, and well, how slaves should act. Besides, it’s been what? Twelve years now? I can handle it, I promise.”

“Oh Anakin,” Obi-Wan’s eyes turned sad here, and Rex looked as though he really wanted to kill _whoever the kark_ kept his general in slavery. “You don’t _have_ to handle it. You spent _twelve years_ surrounded by people who didn’t even _know_ you were a slave, and I can’t even imagine--” his words caught in his throat here, and for the first time since Qui-Gon died, Obi-Wan felt like crying “what you’ve been through. So really, Anakin, it’s no problem, if you want out. _No one_ would think any less of you for it.”

“And if they did, they’d have the entirety of the 501st to answer to,” Rex stated with conviction. 

Anakin grinned, for the first time since being briefed about the mission. _They cared._ He had people around him _who cared_ , and for them, he would do _anything_. 

“I mean it, Master. I can do it, trust me.” 

Obi-Wan looked like he would very much like Anakin to take this one off, but argued no further, opting for a rare hug instead. Anakin beamed into his shoulder, and for a moment, they were two halves of a whole. 

“I’m just gonna--” he gestured towards his comlink, and Anakin waved him off. 

The Council. They were going to have a fit. He would have laughed if he didn’t know that there were still thousands out in the galaxy not lucky enough to have been freed as he had been. 

As Obi-Wan left, Rex stepped up, and said “If you ever...need anything, don’t--I mean not that we wouldn’t have helped _before,_ or that I’m saying you _need_ help, just--” 

Anakin did laugh now, and he stood to place a hand on Rex’s shoulders in thanks. 

“Thank you. It means a lot.”

Red nodded, and went back to his reading, eyes still looking at his general in worry. 

Anakin grinned. It felt as though a weight he hadn’t even noticed was there was lifted off his shoulders. 

They hadn’t known, and that made all the difference. 

Now they did know, and _they cared._

For once, the memory of his scarred past didn’t hurt his throat. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OBI-WAN KENOBI: COMMING THE COUNCIL

Obi-Wan stumbled to the refresher, and briefly considered throwing up his lunch before shaking it off. He had more important things to attend to right now, namely informing the Council that his _padawan had been a slave, and no one had been the wiser for twelve years._

How had he survived, much less smile and laugh everyday? And his mother--

The thought of Shmi Skywalker sent another bout of nausea through his body. They had _left his mother to slavery,_ and when Anakin had asked to visit her--not even set her free--they had said _no. And now she was dead._

Hands shaking, Obi-Wan called for an emergency Council meeting, and within minutes, the faces of Mace Windu, Yoda, Plo Koon, Kit Fisto, Ki-Adi-Mundi, Saesee Tiin, and Shaak Ti filled the blue screen. 

“Obi-Wan? Why have you called for this meeting? Is everything alright?” Shaak Ti inquired kindly. 

Mace raised an eyebrow at him. No one had called an emergency Council meeting for _years._

Swallowing his bile, Obi-Wan reported what he had learned.

“Masters, it has come to my attention that…” _Force he really was going to be sick_ “that Anakin was a-a _slave_.”

Silence filled the screens until the Jedi erupted in a flurry of questions. 

“What? How is this possible?”

“Why were we not notified?”

“How did you learn this?”

“Silence! Listen to Obi-Wan’s story, we will,” ordered Yoda.

Obi-Wan told them what he knew, closing his eyes slightly when he got to the part that Anakin’s mother was also a slave. 

The Council was filled with horrified quiet. _How had they not known_? One of the brightest Knights of the Jedi Order was a slave, and they had not known. 

Guilt raged in Obi-Wan, when he realized just how many times when Anakin had made a mistake that was likely the result of his upbringing, the Council--and himself--had brushed off any explanation for the action. His own padawan had been considered _less than a person,_ and he had not questioned anything. 

“Troubling this is,” Yoda was the first to speak up “many mistakes, I suspect, have happened during young Skywalker’s padawanship, of which not aware we were.”

Plo Koon gave a slight wince, and asked how Anakin had responded. 

“H-he had believed that we were aware of his situation, and so…” the _and so he thought we were purposefully ignoring what had happened_ remained unspoken. 

“What about the Zygerrian mission? If Skywalker doesn’t want to do it, we could dispatch someone else. We won’t force him.” Surprisingly, it was Mace who said this. 

“He wants to continue with the mission. Says that he knows the ‘ins and outs of slavery’” Obi-Wan really wished that he didn’t.

The grief of the Council was visible on their faces, but they nodded and acquiesced to Skywalker’s request. 

“If Qui-Gon were alive I would throttle him,” Mace Windu grumbled, and for once, Obi-Wan was inclined to agree. 

“Meditate on how to continue with this information, we will. Spend more time with Skywalker, you should,” Yoda suggested kindly. 

Obi-Wan nodded, and ended the call. As he walked out of the refresher, he saw Anakin fast asleep in a chair, and resisted the urge to snort. He smiled somberly. _That’s my padawan._

Draping a spare robe over him, Obi-Wan squeezed Anakin’s shoulder, and caught Rex’s eye. They shared a knowing look, and without words, agreed to always be there for him. He would never be alone. _Never again._

Then, Obi-Wan caught sight of Ahsoka, still napping, and groaned. 

_Great. Now he had to explain the whole situation to her._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anakin: So does this mean I can get my slave chip removed now?  
> Obi-Wan: Your WHAT  
> Anakin: You know, slavers use it to blow up their slaves if they try to run?  
> Obi-Wan: *rapidly paling*  
> Anakin: But don’t worry! It’s deactivated. I think.  
> Obi-Wan: OH MY GOSH  
> *Proceeds to rush Anakin into emergency surgery while Kix stares at him dubiously and Anakin’s just sitting there like *pat pat**


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Obi-Wan has become rather touchy on the subject of slavery lately, as a result of the realization of Anakin's life on Tatooine. His long-suffering padawan must deal with the consequences of having an overprotective master, and 580 overprotective clones.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of Of Secrets and Misunderstandings. One shot.

“What? No, _no_ Obi-Wan, _what are you doing?!”_ Anakin grabbed his former master by the shoulders not a moment too soon. 

Obi-Wan, in a fit of fury, all but _hissed_ “Let me _go_ Anakin! _I’ll smack him so hard--”_

“No Obi-Wan! _Control_ your anger! That’s what you always tell me, _right?!”_

Anakin slammed his body against Obi-Wan, the only thing preventing the anything-but-serene Jedi master from tearing Senator Merrik apart. The man had offhandedly implied that he supported slavery in a moment of drunken delirium, and Obi-Wan had blown up. He was rather _touchy_ about these matters as of late. 

Anakin couldn’t help but feel a bit flattered that his master would go against decades of Jedi training for him, but that wasn’t particularly useful at the moment. Obi-Wan had lept out of his seat, and all but ran towards Merrik. Said Senator was currently in the furthest corner of the room from Obi-Wan, and trembling like a nine-year-old padawan after playing in the snow without an extra layer (Anakin would know). 

“ _I’m gonna tear him apart,”_ growled Obi-Wan. 

Anakin, greatly alarmed, looked at Plo Koon and Mace Windu, who had joined them in this Senatorial dinner. 

“Masters! Aren’t you going to _help me?”_ It was highly unusual for _Windu_ to not take action when a Jedi was _so blatantly_ breaking the Code. 

Plo Koon coughed awkwardly. 

“Windu and I are simply admiring the beautiful sunset, Anakin, pay us no mind.”

Anakin snuck a look out the window. It was completely dark outside. 

“Master Windu, _please,_ you gotta-- _kriff Obi-Wan have you been working out?--_ help me here!” 

“Skywalker, I believe Master Koon told you we were previously occupied? I’m sure Kenobi will be perfectly reasonable.”

Anakin gaped at the Korun. _Was he being serious?_

Clearly he would get no help from _anyone_. 

_“Master…”_

Obi-Wan had never been able to refuse that tone of voice. He paused in his flailings for a moment, looking back at Anakin. A questioning _what_ was sent from his eyes.

_“You can’t just threaten bodily harm to a Senator, Master.”_ Since when had _Anakin_ been the voice of reason? Kark, it was tiring. 

“I’m _not_ threatening bodily harm, young one--”

Anakin visibly brightened. 

“--I’m _carrying it out.”_

Merrik was pounding on the locked dining room doors frantically, begging for help. Obi-Wan once again took no heed of his protesting former apprentice, set on teaching that _son of a bantha-poodoo infested slug_ a proper lesson on _why_ slavery was outlawed. 

Two hours and a wailing Senator later, Anakin finally managed to get Obi-Wan and everyone else back on a ship and heading towards Coruscant, his former master still scowling and muttering about how Merrik didn’t deserve to be left off the hook. 

Anakin sighed, half regretting telling _anyone_ about his past. That was the _ninth_ meeting destroyed by Obi-Wan over some reason ranging from _they were looking at you weird, Anakin,_ to _how dare they tolerate slavery here_ . Strangely enough, the Council didn’t seem to acknowledge these complaints at all, writing them off as _oh they were probably imagining things_. 

The other half of him, though, smiled softly at his master, a warm feeling tingling in his heart. 

Still. If this kept up, _Anakin_ would start being the one in charge of keeping negotiations non-aggressive, and if that wasn’t all sorts of wrong, then nothing was. 

Sitting next to Obi-Wan, Anakin placed his head on the now-slightly-calmer Jedi’s shoulders. Obi-Wan wrapped his arm around Anakin’s head and sent out a silent promise, _I’ll always be there._

Humming in contentment, Anakin fell asleep. 

  
**********

Five days later, it was all over the Holonews that Senator Merrik’s springtime paradise, a pristine, while villa, had been painted _completely blue._

And not just any blue. Anakin would recognize that color _anywhere_ . Raising an eyebrow at every soldier of the 501st he came across in the Star Destroyer, Anakin could _feel_ the utter unrepentance radiating from _everyone._

Finally seeing Rex, he questioned “Did you see the news? Senator Merrik’s place, huh?”

Rex nodded in fake solemnity, “Indeed, who could’ve done it?”

“ _Clearly_ it had to be a _large group of people_ , how could anyone else pull that off in _one night?’’ Oh_ Rex _so_ knew what they had done. Anakin was willing to bet that his own captain had taken part in a little vandalization of late. 

Rex merely smirked, and said “well, you have to admit General, he ain’t the nicest of men.”

Anakin groaned. Obi-Wan was officially corrupting _everyone_. 

“I love you guys, but _seriously?”_

At this, Rex laughed, and replied “we love you too, General,” which of course answered _nothing_ and _everything_ at the same time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anakin: Rex.  
> Rex: General.  
> Anakin: You know vandalization is against the law, right?  
> Rex: Good Soldiers Follow Orders.  
> Anakin:???  
> Rex: We were given orders, sir.  
> Anakin: By WHO.  
> Rex: General Kenobi, sir.  
> Anakin: W H A T  
> Rex: Well, maybe not orders, just general approval and consent.  
> Anakin: *groan*


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin gets his slave chip removed! Then it is Destroyed. Capital D.

Anakin rubbed his scar awkwardly. It was so strange, how after so many _years_ , the chip was finally _gone._

Obi-Wan had all but _dragged_ him to Kix, startling the poor medic by muttering something about “...bomb! Didn’t _karking_ tell..! ...gonna _kill...”_

of course, when Kix _did_ find out what Obi-Wan was talking about, even Anakin backed away slightly when he caught sight of the medic’s murderous eyes. 

Kix practically growled at Anakin to get on the operation table, _or else._

It wasn’t as painful as Anakin thought it’d be, and honestly, Obi-Wan and Kix seemed to be glaring at the deceptively harmless chip a _lot_ more than he was. 

If fact, Anakin wasn’t glaring at all. He was grinning. He was finally _free!_

Well, in retrospect, he’d been free for all these years, really, but there was something invigorating seeing the very thing he had feared so much being crushed under Obi-Wan’s boot.

Speaking of which...

”Obi-Wan? What are you doing?” 

“I’m crushing this _monstrosity,_ former padawan-mine.” 

Anakin stared at Kix, looking to see if he was the only one thinking Obi-Wan was being a little ridiculous (it was touching, Anakin would admit, but still, a little ridiculous. For Force sakes, the chip was already broken, why was Obi-Wan still stomping on it?!).

Kix, oblivious to his General’s gaze, glared at the shattered explosive, and proceeded to join in on the stomping. 

Anakin stared, bewildered. 

_They’ve gone insane. I mean, I always thought that I’d go crazy first!_

Watching Obi-Wan take out all his pent up anger—anger that Anakin hadn’t even known he _had (_ it made him seem so much more _human,_ and less like a perfect Jedi, and for the first time, Anakin thought that maybe he wasn’t alone in his struggle to control his emotions after all)—on his slave chip, Anakin wondered briefly how Obi-Wan would have taken to the fact that the implantation itself had very high casualty rates, especially among newborns. 

Then, glancing at his enraged clone medic, Anakin decided _no, they would never find out._

(They did, in fact, find out when they met a former slave on a Seperatist planet they were fighting to gain. _“You survived an implantation? As a baby? That’s practically unheard of!”_ She had said. Obi-Wan had gone very, very pale, and Rex had gone very, very stiff. Ahsoka commed Fives, and within moments, had set up a protection detail for Anakin. Anakin groaned softly and closed his eyes, resigning himself to the fact that Obi-Wan and the 501st wouldn’t let him out of their sight for days.)

Seemingly satisfied with the state of the chip, which was honestly more like dust now than metal, Obi-Wan and Kix turned concerned eyes to him.

”Are you feeling alright General?”

Anakin’s smile widened. 

Honestly? “Never better.”

Grunting in satisfaction, Kix prescribed Anakin one week of bed rest, much to Obi-Wan’s delight.

Anakin sputtered. “One week?! I can’t— it was just a small surgery! What?!” 

Kix stared his General right in the eyes, unrepentant.

”I’ll make it two.”

Anakin backed off meekly. Kix was scary when he wanted to be. 

Grabbing the medic’s forearm, Anakin didn’t quite know what to say. 

He finally settled on “Thank you.” _For everything._

Smiling wryly, Kix pushed his General out the door, saying, “I catch wind of any missions, and I’ll talk to the Jedi Council _myself!”_

Laughing, Anakin swung an arm around his (shorter, and he’d never let him forget it!) master’s shoulders, and met a new era.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this AU, I’m just going to take it that Obi-Wan’s protectiveness reaches maximum potency, and so, being the politician-wary Jedi he is, he does a full-in-depth search on Palpatine. He does not like what he finds. Anakin is forbidden from any meetings without Obi-Wan present, and while he is not pleased at all, Anakin bears it with surprising tolerance.(Being with Obi-Wan so much more reminded him of how much he trusted the man). Palpatine’s plans are quite messed up now, and while I have no idea how this affects the future, it most definitely saved the Galaxy and Anakin does not fall. Because Star Wars is depressing enough as it is.


End file.
